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Mariam and Wayne discuss the history of Lexington & Fayette County’s merged governments, one of only fifteen merged city-county governments in the United States.
Denise Shanks tells the story of Smiley Pete, Lexington’s “town dog” in the 1940’s and 1950’s.
Mariam and David discuss Lafayette's 1825 visit to Lexington as we approach the 200th anniversary in 2024-2025.
Brenna guests to share her research on three of Lexington’s Black enclaves, founded by formerly enslaved persons after the Civil War. She highlights the history we know, and points out that much of the history of these hamlets and their residents are lost
Mariam and Wayne discuss the 1968 removal of the railroad tracks from Downtown Lexington in time for the 50th
Mariam and David discuss the sordid life of John Wilkes Booth before his assassination of Abraham Lincoln, including his visit to Lexington during the Civil War as a theater actor. Some listener discretion is advised.
Walking Tour
Join us for a walking tour of Lexington’s literary history!
Tour Length 1.05 miles
The music clips used in this tour are from “Walking Barefoot on Grass” by Kai Engel, and are used with a CCBY license. It is available here.
Join us for a walking tour of Lexington’s literary history!
Tour Length 1.05 miles
Denise guest hosts and give sketches of the lives of three Lexington Civil War era women: Elizabeth Harbeson Hummons, Francis Dallam Peter, and Ella Bishop Ransom.
Walking Tour
Join us for a walking tour of Downtown Lexington’s historic LGBTQ+ places. The full tour is available as a single MP3, or you can download individual tracks. For the single MP3, music will play between the stops. You can pause the track while you walk between stops.
This tour covers a walking distance of 1.6 miles.
Join us for a walking tour of Downtown Lexington’s historic LGBTQ+ places. The full tour is available as a single MP3, or you can download individual tracks. For the single MP3, music will play between the stops.
Gallery
Central Library Main Gallery (1st Floor)
Exhibit Dates
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A local history exhibit commemorating 250Lex from March 21 to July 13 at the Central Library Gallery, 140 East Main Street. The exhibit includes items from the library’s own Kentucky Room collection as well as loans from the Lexington History Museum, Keeneland, the University of Kentucky, and local residents.
The library has a variety of directories and yearbooks with local information. In the library's current digital collection, there is a selection of residential and street directories, yearbooks, school directories, and organizational directories. These are all fully word-searchable.
An eligible parent or legal guardian can complete this form to apply for a digital library card for a juvenile.
The Kentucky Room's collections contain Lexington's residential directories going back over 200 years, and are some of the most useful resources for researchers looking for family information, neighborhood histories, and house histories.
The Lexington Weekly Press was published every Wednesday in Lexington, Kentucky, and contained local, state, and foreign news. The paper focused on Central Kentucky’s “agriculture, manufactures and fine stock”, as well as literary and scientific news, market reports, and serial stories. Local weddings, deaths, community events, and elections for Lexington and the surrounding region. The paper was sent anywhere in the United States at a cost of one dollar per year.
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Eligible applicants can complete this form to apply for a digital library card.
Until 1974, Lexington and Fayette County had two separate governing bodies.
The Daily Lexington Atlas ran from late 1847 through early 1849 and was Lexington’s first daily paper, and the first to publish information from the telegraph lines. It is described by William Perrin in his 1882 History of Fayette County Kentucky as a “red-hot Whig and fiery southern” publication. It contains some articles and editorials that are overtly racist, as the editors favored slavery, then emancipation only if the freed African Americans were immediately sent to Liberia. It covers the 1848 presidential election and the local election for Kentucky Governor. Perrin claims the paper had an extensive subscriber list, but had to “give up the ghost after several months disastrous experience” due to the expense of the paper.
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Check here for your school's list of summer assignments.
The city report covers the outline of a citizen participation work plan and its connection with neighborhood groups, as well as the results of those meetings and community concerns that took place throughout 1969. It contains neighborhood maps, images of news articles, and and project methodology.
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This is a handwritten series of lectures detailing Samuel D. McCullough's memories of his childhood and life in Lexington, Kentucky, accompanied by letters and a photograph of his house.
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